four major interstates underwater. at least six people dead and the south slammed with inches, if not a foot of rain in just hours. many people stranded in their homes and our bob van dillen tells us when this could end. plus, a couple found out they were having a baby. the problem is here, it's another couple's child implanted by accident. and then tired of people asking you why you aren't married? we've got the reason why some of you simply don't want to say i do. plus, more than 100 of the world's leaders come to new york. we have all of that for thank you hour on "morning express." good morning, i'm richard lui. first off, we just got this in, in about the last 15 minutes, a terror plot investigation is

getting bigger. a source familiar with the case tells us investigators are looking now for about a dozen people. the three men already in custody were in court yesterday. they are expected of being involved in a plot to attack a major railroad or subway station. but officials admit, they don't know exactly when or when. right now the men are charged only with lying to authorities. we have more on this story in about 15 minutes. we are also seeing some of the worst rainfall to hit the southeast in parts of saintry. this video is six flags amusement park in atlanta -- kind of, right? it's underwater. firefighters couldn't quite get to this house on fire. kind of ironic. all of the water around it but still, simmering basically in the middle of all of that moisture. at least six people have been killed in the storms. some are drivers caught up in flash flooding. a witness saying the conditions made it impossible to help one of the victims. take a listen -- >> there's no way i could help. it was the only thing. i was screaming and yelling and flashing my lights trying to get

him to stop and there was no way i could get him to help. he was on the other side of the creek. there was nothing i could do. >> one family fought to survive in a creek near atlanta. affiliate wsv reporting a woman held on to her 1-year-old in one arm and tree in another for three hours until they were rescued. further down the creek, the father could not hold on to his 2-year-old son. that boy was swept away and drowned. so difficult. a lot of stories we have to tell today. it looks like another wet day for the southeast. bob van dillen is keeping that in his sights for us. hey, bob. >> that's right, richard. we will see heavy downpours once again today but this time shift it to the west by 200, 300 miles. that's what it looks like right now. look at the rain coming in. it will be heavy for the next couple of hours. switching back towards tennessee. notice this line by mississippi right now that. will arc in towards the alabama area over the next couple of hours. as it does so, it's going to drop more heavy rain. we're talking about as much as one, maybe two inches of rain. how about atlanta's chances of

rain? here's what it looks like with the radar. dry so far. just ground scatter right here. the actual rain should fall, heavy stuff, northern parts of georgia, northern alabama through tennessee into mississippi over the next couple of days. but rain is in and out of the forecast. i have to look at that and the bay area heat in a couple minutes, rich. >> we thought rain and then, bam. >> unblelievable. we will show you who's getting rain that needs it, texas. and we will show you video from the southeast throughout the day. we have live cameras from our affiliates in the south. more on that in a bit. first more on the day's top stories. new details about at fair that unraveled john edwards' political career. one of his former aides claims edwards has always known he was the father of his miss stress' child and according to "the new york times," he may admit that soon. edwards' friends say it was his wife elizabeth who did not want him to come forward. she addressed the paternity rumors on our stet sister

network cnn in july. >> and the continued questions about the paternity factor. any solution there, dna tests? do you know if anything will happen? >> my expectation is at some point something happens and i hope for the sake -- for the sake of this child that it happens in a quiet way. >> that former aide, andrew young, you see here, says he only agreed to claim paternity after edwards begged him. sources say he later recanted because edwards turned on him. edwards did not respond for requests for comment on that. we will have more on that story in about 20 minutes. the followup from the affair could put edwards in jail. whether he have the details on that as i was mentioning. so far, it looks like older kids will need one shot for the h1n1 but kids 6 months to 9 could need two. that's from the institute of allergies and infectious diseases. we should learn more next month. the director said none of the 600 kids in the studies had adverse reactions to those shots.

okay. we're getting a look at new footage from the michael jackson movie. this is it. ♪ they say why, why ♪ tell them that it's human nature ♪ ♪ why, why that's jackson singing "human nature." i remember that one during concert rehearsals before he died in june. reuters is reporting the movie opens to the general public october 28th. it will have a two-week run. "l.a. times" reports a soundtrack will be released when the movie comes up. u.s. government officers in south africa are closed because of a possible threat to the u.s. embassy there. a state department representative says this is a precaution, and they will be closed for one day. he did not give any more details about that threat. then we take you to an arizona couple that is now suing walmart and the state over some photos they tried to develop. what basically happened, they were accused of sexual abuse over photos they took of their kids taking a bath.

their lawsuit says walmart turned the pictures over to the police. the kids were taken away last fall and the couple did not regain custody for more than one month. >> here we were forced to sit and watch helplessly as they ripped our crying, screaming, terrified children away from us. >> we now realize how much control the state has, and that they can pull any one of your children out of your home right now. >> the lawsuit claims here the store did not inform the couple it had an unsuitable print policy. so far we have no response from the state or walmart. tough story there. tough one. let's talk about weather. that's the big story you have been on top of for us. of course, the south hammered g stories, too. not all bad. >> out of texas. they need the rain. san antonio, austin, into waco, towards houston. they're getting showers, too. i want to start out with the

flood warnings. all of the areas we see right now put in bright green 23under flood warning. that last basically over the next couple days. rain in the forecast off and on. not as heavy as the past couple of days for sure but it will still be in the forecast. here's the way it looks around texas. here's the way it goes in dallas. you're trying up pretty well now. more thunderstorms in store for you later this afternoon. check out san antonio off to your west. beneficial rain headed in your direction. it's going to be today through tonight. looking for as much as an inch or two inches of rain activity over the next couple of days. great news for texas. all of the rain today, not bad. how about the northeast? light showers around central p.a. and new york, syracuse getting showers. more storms off the coast and north carolina beaches. south carolina going to get wet as well. then you see heavy rain across northern illinois moving straight in towards madison, wisconsin, stretching the rest of the state, too. it will be a downpour for the morning. just basically a washout with scattered showers back in there later this afternoon. high pressure dominating across

the west but we still have that heat advisory for the bay aefrmt low 90s today to near 100 degrees. if you're along the coast, not quite that warm. san francisco itself, i'm thinking you top out in the low to mid 80s. but it will be hot. not many people with air conditioning out there, as you know. >> not many folks do that because they don't get much hot weather. opposite things happening on both sides of the country. >> and in colorado, the snow, three inches in the foothills near denver yesterday. there's a lot going on. >> bob's got a paycheck for at least another day or two. >> and fall comes today, too. >> on top of that. >> first day of fall, 5:20 in the afternoon, eastern. >> a lot happening. thanks, bob. a couple thought they would never be able to have another child, only to endure a nightmare when they finally conceived. how the woman wound up carrying another couple's embryo, and the brave thing that they're doing after the baby's born. (announcer) carefree introduces protection, times ten.

new carefree ultra protection liners, with wings! absorb ten times more, like a pad but feel thin and comfy, like a liner.

new carefree® ultra protection™ progresso. your chicken tuscany says it has fiber in it. yep. four tasty new soups with 28% of your daily fiber. but i like this chicken tuscany., i like it too. but it has fiber in it. that's right. fiber? yeah. but i like it. (announcer) progresso. you gotta taste this soup.

three pharmacists said they warned anna nicole smith that the drugs she was prescribed would kill her. one pharmacist refused to fill a prescription that include 30d 0 methadone tablets. three psychiatrists are accused of having sexual contact with the late model. they face charges of illegally providing her with drugs. a man whose family is found dead in florida is believed to be in custody in haiti. florida officials want to question mesac damas in the deaths of his wife and five children. police are not calling him a suspect but he is wanted in charge of violating probation on a domestic violence case. >> in january of this year he was arrested for simple battery or misdemeanor battery against the female we found deceased in the apartment. he pled no contest to it in june. i do not believe so, other than the initial arrest. >> the bodies of guerline damas and her five children were found

saturday. the oldest child was 9. the youngest 11 months old. mesac damas is believed to have boarded a flight for haiti the day before. straight to this live presser, this news briefing going on right now. the governor of georgia, sunny purdue, is talking about the deadly flooding that happened across the state and southeast. as we have been reporting, at least six dead, four major interstates closed. this is one of the amusement parks, six flags, completely underwater. we've got so many stories to tell you about and, of course, the governor right now trying to get his hands arrange what is a very, very complicated issue as his state tries to grapple with this economically as well as when it comes to the health of his residents. we will be watching that for you and getting you information from this brief fg ing if we ha it. we are hearing from an ohio couple they are having another couple's baby by mistake. they used in vitro before successfully but this time

around say doctors implanted the wrong embryo. they plan on giving the baby boy to his biological parents though. this morning they explained the difficult decision to our sister network cnn. >> we made a choice as we had gone along and it's been exceptionally difficult but as we approached the delivery, that we're trying to frame this situation as a gift to the other family, despite the loss that will incur, we're bringing a new child into this world, and we really believe that it is a gift. >> the baby is due in two weeks. the fertility clinic allegedly involved has not been named. jen westhoven joins us now. lower grocery bills is good news for you but not farmers. the prices from the things bu from the farm are really going down. our money expert is here. jen, give us the details on this. >> i know so many people out there, it's a time of hardship for a lot of people, trying to stretch your unemployment

benefits. so any tomb we sime we see good a bad economy, i want to let you know with at least you could be a little comfortable with. as richard mentioned, not great for farmers but a lot of farm products are cheaper. milk should be customering you about $1 less than it did last year. the latest average is around $3 for a gallon of milk and bacon is cheaper, too, about 25 cents cheaper for a pound of bacon. i know a lot of people who are big bacon fans. they will be happy about that. mostly say that this is because of the recession. when it comes to bacon, though, actually pig farmers say it's also being made worse because of a lot of confusion about h1n1, which is sometimes called swine flu, and you should know, you can't get that from eating pork. i think we can't say that enough. the pig farmers say, look, it's still affecting them. you can only getting it from other human beings, not from eating any pork. in washington this morning,

the fed is starting a two-day meeting. it is expected to keep its rates near zero. in its policy statement, which is due tomorrow, the big question is going to be, will the fed echo chairman bernanke's statement last week when he said the recession is, quote, very likely over. we will be watching that one. richard, we just mentioned people on jobless benefits. the house may take up today extending benefits for people dm so in some states. back to you. a gentleman tried to get to a car being repossessed. the toddler is okay. the mom not so much. boss: so word's gettin' out that geico can help people save in even more ways -

on motorcycle insurance, rv, camper, boat insurance. nice work, everyone. exec: well, it's easy for him. he's a cute little lizard. gecko: ah, gecko, actually - exec: with all due respect, if i was tiny and green and had a british accent i'd have more folks paying attention to me too... i mean - (faux english accent) "save money! pip pip cheerio!"

exec 2: british? i thought you were australian. gecko: well, it's funny you should ask. 'cause actually, i'm from - anncr: geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. ♪ bicycle, what are we waiting for? the flowers are blooming. the air is sweet. and zyrtec® starts... relieving my allergies... 2 hours faster than claritin®. my worst symptoms feel better, indoors and outdoors. with zyrtec®, the fastest... 24-hour allergy medicine, i promise not to wait as long to go for our ride. zyrtec® works fast, so i can love the air™.

all right. as we've been telling you, we're listening to the governor of georgia as he tried to explain to reporters and obviously to the citizens within the region about how this major flooding has affected the area. he just told us that seven dead is the number now. the number before about ten minutes ago we have been hearing and able to confirm for you was six. the governor now saying seven dead as a result of what has left people on their air mattresses, trying to get from home to home, trying to get to work, trying to get to places they normally would be able to drive to. of course, we are also hearing there are several major interstates that have been shut. we're watching all of this, listening to the governor for you. as i said earlier, we will get you all of the major development that's come from this news conference for all of those in the south that are concerned about what's happening. we also have this hour for you new report that's former presidential candidate john edwards may soon claim paternity of his former mistress' child.

rielle hunter tested before a north carolina grand jury last month. they want to know if edwards misused campaign funds to keep her quiet. a former federal prosecutor talked about alleged payments to rielle on our sister network cnn. here it is. >> we know some of the campaign contributors gave her a bmw allegedly. we also heard she got lodging. she got other expenses paid. that could really be considered a campaign donation. i have to say, it's really novel. it's complicated but it is possible. >> edwards could go to jail for five years if he's indicted and convicted in this case. he has said he does not think any campaign funds were used improperly. "monday night football" looked more like a hollywood premiere. rafer weigel is doing all of that star watching for us. >> yeah. it's not something you expect. >> no, right. >> watching the nfl. this tells me the entertainment world and nfl have merged even

closer. the case with the miami dolphins, we literally have seen them merge closer. they were hosting indianapolis. they're some of the part owners, gloria stefan, jennifer lopez, mark anthony, venus and serena williams walking the sidelines. everybody came in on an orange carpet as opposed a red carpet. meanwhile, in the game, the colts had the ball for one-fourth of the entire game but still won. peyton manning through this td pass on the first play to dallas clark, leading him to a come-from-behind win and high-fived buddy tiger woods. michael vick's first game for being released from dogfighting but do not expect to see him on the field -- at least not much, anyway. andy reid said even though starter mcnabb is hurt vick will still take a back seat to current backup kevin cobb. vick hasn't played in two years but they say he will probably play a few plays sunday. if you have the flu, listen up, or if you know somebody who does, texas quarterback colt mccoy was battling flu symptoms in the longhorn's game against texas tech. he didn't do so well so in the

first half downed bee alight and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and came out feeling better and completed every pass in the second half, including this td, leading them a win over tech. >> peanut butter and jelly time. a man got a chance of the life time. the crew saw his dream come true when the team made him his personal guest on his 102nd birthday. that included a tour of the field, clubhouse and he got to meet the players and take in a game and a bagful of goodies. this just in -- the ap is reporting former super bowl star plaxico burress has been sentenced for two years in prison for the new york city nightclub incident when he accidentally shot himself in the thigh. that is the time we expected him to be sentenced, but it is now official. he will be serve thak prison sentence right away and hopes to return to football. >> that 102-year-old fan, i feel for him. that's how old i will be when the giants win a world series, i think -- >> you better step it up and get your dad that for his birthday. >> i better do that.

thanks, rafer. president clinton is weighing in on the health care debate. what he is saying about the race war and what the opposition is facing. and a world war ii vet has plenty of fight left. he got out of his wheelchair to take some burglars down.te ere wh certain high blood prsure medicines the way aleve sometimes can. that's one reason why doctors recommend tylenol more than any other brand of pain reliever. - hello! - ha! why don't you try a home cooked meal...

with yummy hamburger helper? oh! tada! fantastically tasty, huh? ummm, it's good. what would you guys like? hamburger helper. what?! one pound... one pan... one tasty meal! s it hard to breathe. but now that i'm breathing better with advair... i can enjoy the zoo with my grandkids. (announcer) for people with copd including chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or both, great news. advair helps significantly improve lung function. while nothing can reverse copd, advair is different from most other medications because it contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator working together to help you breathe better. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. we had a great day, grandpa!

we sure did. ask your doctor how advair helps improve lung function for better breathing. (announcer) find out how to get your first full prescription free at advaircopd.com.

we just heard from georgia's governor, who now says seven deaths are blamed on the widespread flooding in the southeast. we are at six earlier this morning. parts of georgia have gotten more than 20 inches of rain since last week. coming up, meteorologist bob van dillen tells wlus the worst is over or more severe weather is on the way. president obama considering a new strategy for the war in afghanistan. it would focus on going after al qaeda, including using more spy planes to target suspected terrorist havens as well. administration officials say this could be a better option than a major military escalation. so far it looks like older kids will need one shot for the h1n1 flu, but kids 6 months to 9

years old, that specific group, may need two. that's from preliminary data from the national institute of allergy and infectious diseases. we should learn more about this in the next month. 600 kids took part in these studies so far. just some of the stories we're following for you on this hour of "morning express." welcome back. also, we just learned this morning counterterrorism officials sent police security bulletins about stadiums, hotels and entertainment centers. we have copies of those. they say in those they don't know of any specific plots against the sites but they're considered potential terror targets. and so is mass transit. officials have also urged transit systems to step up their patrols because of the recent arrests in a possible plot against new york transit. former president bill clinton thinks some of the opposition against president obama is racially motivated but he thinks it has nothing to do with the flight over health care -- or the fight, rather, over health care. here's what he told larry king last night. >> i believe that some of the

right wing extremists, which oppose president obama, are also racially prejudiced and would prefer not to have an african-american president. but i don't believe that all of the people that oppose him on health care and all of the conservatives are racists. and i believe if he were white, every single person who opposes him now would be opposing him then. >> now, clinton also said he thinks health care is the fight that president obama and the democratic party needs to win on merits. this morning police in virginia held a news conference on the rapper charged with killing a pastor and suspected in three other deaths. police say they finished identifying the victims, and they expect to charge richard mccroskey iii with the other killings. they also say the victims died from blunt force trauma. got that piece of information. mccroskey calls himself syko sam and has rapped about the thrill of killing. president obama is with other world leaders in new york today to focus on climate change. they'll also jump-start talks on

a global climate change pact that's expected to be signed soon. the summit will last all day. during a speech just moments ago, the president stressed how important it is to use the world's resources wisely. >> we know what needs to be done. we know that our planet's future depends on a global commitment to permanently reduce greenhouse gas pollution. we know that if we put the right rules and incentives in place, we will unleash the creative power of our best scientists and engineers and entrepreneurs to build a better world. >> do you agree with the president and think that the u.s. needs to do more to combat climate change? or do you believe the effects of global warming are overblown and any money put towards it would be a waste? call us here at -- tell us your view at 1-877-tell-hln. you can also e-mail us your view at cnn.com/hln or text us at hln tv. we will air your comments oh, in about an hour and a half.

stick around for that. president obama also plans to meet with palestinian and israeli leaders as well. it's an attempt to build momentum for the peace talks that stalled in 2008. the talks get under way at 11:30 eastern. this is all part of the u.n. general assembly, which is going on live right now, and will for the next part of this week. there it is live pictures right now. bob van dillen joins us. also happening live unfortunately is a lot of flooding across the southeast. >> yes. >> some other hot weather in the west, too. >> you're right. ly tell you, historic flooding in some spots around atlanta. these are some of the readings we have seen topping 1919. yeah, 100-year flood in some spots around atlanta. how about the rain? i think the real focus of the heavy rain today is going to be shifted over to the west in alabama, northern parts of tennessee and back in towards mississippi. this area got ten inches of rain in the past few days. they don't need anymore.

they will get some as well. high pressure building in so it's a little farther this time. high pressure with the southwesterly wind and southwesterly wind coming in will converge right around central alabama. those are the folk that's will get rain as much as an inch, two inches today, maybe a little more underneath the more persistent bands. here's the way it looks. flood warnings all the way around the region from north georgia, central georgia, back into alabama and mississippi. all of the bright green areas a flood warning. all of the rain is not bad today when you get in towards texas, extreme drought. you have had it for the last year, year and a half. now you're getting the rain coming back into play. san antonio, nice squall line off towards the west. that rotates in here later today. one to two inches of rain in the next 24 hours or so. that's great news. if you're trying to travel towards syracuse and central p.a., light rain this morning and afternoon with thunderstorms across the carolinas, moving in across the atlantic. heavy rain moving in from illinois towards wisconsin. that's here also. and out west, richard touched on it, a lot of hot air out there

that will build today to the lower 90s outside of san francisco, to near 100 degrees when you get up to places like santa rosa. heat advisories out there in areas shaded in yellow. more details coming up in a bit, richard. >> real beautiful when it gets hot out that way. >> it does look nice but that's kind of stifling. >> thanks, bob. breaking news. a terror plot investigation is getting better. we learned that within the last hour here at hln. a source familiar with the case telling us investigators are looking for about a dozen peo e people. before there were three men already in custody and that were of interest in court yesterday. they're suspected of being involved in a plot to attack a major railroad or subway station. but officials admit they don't know exactly where or when. right now the men are charged only with lying to authorities. now the last hour learning that they're now looking at 12 people. kidnapping suss spegt phillip garrido apparently made a discovery so unbelievable, he claimed he was on a mission from god. it is a simple black box right there. but you won't believe what he said it could do.

for arthritis pain... in your hands... knees... and back. for little bodies with fevers.. and big bodies on high blood pressure medicine. tylenol works with your body... in a way other pain relievers don't... so you feel better... knowing doctors recommend tylenol... more than any other brand of pain reliever. it can be tough living with copd... but i try not to let it slow me down. i go down to the pool for a swim... get out and dance... even play a little hide-n-seek. i'm breathing better... with spiriva. announcer: spiriva is the oúly once-daily inhaled maintenance treatment for both forms of copd, which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. i take it every day. it keeps my airways open... to help me breathe better all day long. and it's not a steroid. announcer: spiriva does not replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms.

stop taking spiriva and call your doctor if your breathing suddenly worsens, your throat or tongue swells, you gehives, or have vision changes or eye pain. tell your doctor if you have glaucoma, problems passing urine or an enlarged prostate, as these may worsen with spiriva. also discuss the medicines you take, even eye drops. side effects may include dry mouth, constipation and trouble passing urine. every day could be a good day to breathe better. announcer: ask your doctor if once-daily spiriva is right for you. welcome to progressive. how may i help you? i'm looking for a deal on car insurance. i think i might have a coupon in here. there's an easier way. we've got the "name your price" option. you do? follow me. you tell us how much you want to pay, and we'll build you a policy that fits your budge@e and i still get great coverage? uh-huh. go ahead. you're the boss. i'm the boss of savings. more like the c.e.o. oh, oh. no glass ceiling. the freedom to name your price. now, that's progressive. call or click today.

the man charged with kidnapping ja kidnappin kidnapping jaycee dugard and holding her captive for 18 years apparently claimed he made an unbelievable discovery. it's a black box with jacks for head phones. you may have heard this before. phillip garrido's former client telling us what phillip garrido claimed this little black box could do. >> when he first brought it in, he said this box you could hear voices from the other side. you could hear people telling you how -- what's going to happen and what's going to happen, what the future says. >> well, garrido also claimed the box let him talk to people without speaking.

garrido and his wife pleaded not guilty in the dugard kidnapping case. that's the black box. an arrest warrant was served to a teenager accused of using an ax and firebombs to injury nine students at a school. prosecutors in germany say the warrant accuses the 18-year-old of attempted murder. it was read to him at the hospital where he's recovering. police shot him after thursday's attack. former presidential candidate john edwards may change his story about an affair with a campaign worker. some of edwards' associates telling "the new york times" he can soon claim paternity of rielle hunter's daughter. his lawyer said they would wait to see how things unfold before making a statement. you might remember here edwards very publicly denied being the father on an interview on abc last year. >> i know that it's not possible that this child could be mine because of the timing of events. so i know it's not possible. happy to take a paternity test, and would love to see it happen. >> paternity test that still has not happened. but a friend of hunter says the

affair was still going on when hunter got pregnant. hunter was close to her due date right before the 2008 iowa caucuses, if you took a look at the time line. one analyst on our sister network cnn says that makes it even more shocking that he went ahead in his campaign. >> had he won in iowa, which was expected, barack obama would have been knocked out of the race. it would have been john edwards versus hillary clinton. john edwards might well have ended up with the democratic nomination. if you seek about the country seeking change and the recklessness that would go into his nomination unravelling potentially in front of the country's eyes, that keep it's in perspective why this is even a store why. otherwise it's just tawdry and extremely sad for his family. >> no doubt. edwards came in second in iowa and dropped out of the presidential race a few weeks later. maybe the recession has caused you to spend a little less and save a little more. it's also doing a lot of other things, too, even keep from saying i do.

our money expert jen westhoven is here with how the recession is affecting you. keeping people from saying i do. you're talking about marriage? >> yeah, it's not only impacting everyday decisions that you make like getting to work in the morning but whether or not you decide to get married. this is all information that comes from the census bureau. it's a treasure trove of information. there's so much in here, richard, we will give you some of the little bits that we can get. more americans staying single. about 31%. maybe they're thinking i want to be more secure at work before i make this kind of a promise or saying, i can't afford a wedding right now. a lot of people in their 20s staying single, too. they're not just looking at trends over culture and over the decades. they're talking about in the recession compared to the not a recession. here are the impacts you can see -- fewer people getting married, fewer people buying homes, also fewer people moving. you can see people up and moving to cities in the sunbelt. that slowed down a lot. what's up? car pulling and mass transit. a lot of people finding cheaper ways to get to work.

they also said, richard, it meant people were spending a longer time commuting. >> yeah. >> 25 1/2 minutes, because they're leaving early to go pick up their friend. >> i'm car pooling. >> yeah? good. here's something out in the past few minutes, home prices rising slightly over the summer. this comes from the federal housing finance agencies. they say prices row .3 of a percent from june to july. so when i say prices rose, i don't want to get too excited. it's not a party. the groove is not back on and everything's fine. but we have seen that housing prices really seemed to have definitely stabilized and maybe even now getting -- starting to get a little bit better. >> you know i like to be an optimist. it's good to see that. we'll take any positive sign after so many months of difficulty. >> definitely the right direction. >> thank you, jen. some people say you never have too many shoes. a woman in california's testing that theory. darlene flynn owns more than

11,000 shoe-related items. she started collecting 9 years ago. flynn has everything from a shoe toothbrush to a tshoe bed. >> i used to buy everything that i saw was a shoe, and then the last couple of years i just buy the things that are really unique because it's getting overwhelming. there's not enough room in my house. >> flynn estimates her shoe collection is worth $500, she says someday she would like a shoe-shaped swimming pool. jen westhoven, you're not a big shoe person. that's a lot, 11,000 shoe-related items. >> look at that. >> if you're her friend, you know what to give her for christmas. >> she's got it all. police and hundreds of people fight over a place they call home. why police destroy a makeshift camp called the jungle.

(announcer) everything you need to stretch out on long trips. residence inn. ♪ bicycle, what are we waiting for? the flowers are blooming. the air is sweet. and zyrtec® starts... relieving my allergies... 2 hours faster than claritin®. my worst symptoms feel better, indoors and outdoors. with zyrtec®, the fastest... 24-hour allergy medicine, i promise not to wait as long to go for our ride. zyrtec® works fast, so i can love the air™.

(announcer) everything you need to take a breather on long trips. residence inn. police broke up a makeshift camp for illegal immigrants in france. 276 migrants were arrested at the camp police called the

jungle because of living conditions. 125 of them are minors. the french government plans to use bulldozers here to destroy that camp and others like them and return to land to its -- return the land, rather, to its natural state. the camp houses many as 1,000 men from places like afghanistan, iraq, iraq and somalia. the man known as the hip-hop doc has won a contest for making the best public service announcement about the h1n1 virus. here it is. ♪ h1n1 swine flu infection intervention ♪ ♪ i break convention >> dr. clarke won $2,500 and his psa will be on national tv. his rap did the best job of informing people about the flu and motivating them here to take steps to stop it from spreading. ♪ i recommend watching your hands for protection ♪ >> the next time you go to a club, you might hear that song. >> and wash your hands afterwards. >> and cough in your elbow pit.

whatever you call it. heavy flooding in the south can put a damper on the pga tour's final event of the year. >> and, richard, people not being able to golf pales in comparison to people losing their homes but it's very interesting to see because we have no idea what they're going to do. this is unprecedented territory. this is east lake country club, which is the final leg of the fedex cup. the winner of the fedex cup gets $10 million. look at that. they're supposed to tee off on thursday. based on that, i don't see how that's going to happen. the club reportedly said some players were out practicing on the driving range, even though the course is closed. this just in to hln, former super bowl star mras cobplaxico has just been sentenced to prison for two years for accidentally shooting himself at a nightclub. burress said he expects to play when he's out in two years and some say he will be able to do it if he keeps himself in shape.

michael vick was able to do it. while buffalo bill safety whitner was stealing passes from tampa bay sunday, somebody stole $400,000 worth of jewelry from his home. whitner's publicist said he is on, quote, high alert because he doesn't know who did it. police say it could have been someone who was invited into the home and that he is not going to press charges. he just wants the jewelry back. actually last week another bills' player had his home vandalized. what's going on in buffalo? and speaking of football, nfl hall of famer michael irvin's debut on "dancing with the stars" did not score big with the judges. irvin, a former star with the dallas cowboys, actually tied for the lowest score on the show's premiere. richard, tom delay got a higher score than michael irvin. now, delelay doesn't have the gs michael irvin has but here's the deal. he has big shoes to fill. smith and rice both won, former football players. >> and he was saying, i got to

beat jerry rice. but with a performance like that, he's not close yet. >> he said he wasn't taking that many risks. i don't know. that looks risky to me. >> we will see how he does. hego. >> i'm sure a lot of people are going to vote for him. he's a popular guy. >> and a nice guy. thanks a lot, rafer. we have an exciting addition to our prime-time lineup showing up next week. "the joy behar show" will air every weekday at 8:00 p.m., 9 p.m. eastern. here's what you'll get. her moment of joy commentary. >> unless you're a professional kick boxer, there's no real reason for an adult to ever engage in spanking. there are new parents that are spanking a 1-year-old child. now, what could a 1-year-old possibly do to deserve being spanked? come home drunk after a date? lose the family fortune playing the punies? start a war under false

pretenses? in my opinion, there's nothing a child can do to warrant children spanking them. young children pee, pop, cry, and throw food. that's what children do. it's the parent's job to communicate in a manner that doesn't involve bruising physically or psychologically. the philosopher renee day carte, he didn't say, i spank therefore i am, he said, i think therefore i am. so when your children start carrying on and screaming and yelling and driving you crazy, don't lift your hand to them, lift your mind. spanking your children won't make them love or respect you, it will make them fear or resent you. do you want to be a parent or a network executive? i believe that spanking is abuse. hopefully that's not just me. >> thank you, joy. "the joy behar show" starts tuesday, september 29th, 9:00 p.m., right here on hln.

text messages may have become weapons in the hands of some suspected high school bullies. why police are getting involved after a student said she kept getting menacing messages on her cell phone. [ominous music] [screeching] [dejectedly] oh. [screeching] [barks] (man) if you think about it, this is what makes the ladders different from other job-search sites. [screeching] we only work with the big talent. [all coughing] welcome to the ladders-- a premium job site for only $100k-plus jobs and only $100k-plus talent. ( laughs, click ) when you hear a click, ( clicking ) you know it's closed and secure. that's why hefty food bags click closed. hefty! hefty! hefty!

so you know you've helped lock in freshness and lock out air... to help prevent freezer burn. be sure it's secure with hefty food bags. just one click and you know it's closed. hefty! hefty! hefty! ( click, click, click ) they make little hearts happy... ...and big hearts happy too. because as part of a heart healthy diet,... ...those delicious oats in cheerios can help naturally lower cholesterol. (cheerios spilling) cheerios. how can something so little... ...help you do something so big.

>> welcome to comcast local edition. my guest this hour is dr. faye williams, national chair of the national congress of black women. thank you so much for joining me. >> it's always great to be here. >> now, for those that may not know, what's the mission of the national congress of black women? >> well, we are an organization that works with the community, mainly with young people. we have a program for 9-12 years old where we teach them about the wonderful vocations there are in life. we bring in ambassadors, athletes, and we want them to

know that they can be more than a singer, dancer, or football player. we have another program for which comcast is our media partner on young ambassadors. we try to teach young adults to navigate life. we teach conflict resolution, about vocations, and about going to school, the importance of time management, discipline, that kind of thing. >> thou, you have an anniversary awards luncheon coming up. you recognize numerous women for their wonderful accomplishments. when is the luncheon? >> sunday, september 27th. people remember it by the sunday morning following the congressional black caucus. it's at 11:00 this year, which is a change of time. >> where is it located? >> this year at the united states naval yard, sixth and m street southeast. we're looking forward to having

a wonderful time. there's a beautiful view of the water there. >> and in celebrating your 25th anniversary, congratulations, by the way. >> thank youia who are some of our honorees? there's an extensive list. >> we always honor first our founding chairs and fathers. we want to salute them first. janet lange heart corn, we have several other women, we always honor the newly elected blank congresswomen. that will be marsha fudge this year. we have a judge from michigan, judge denise langhart mars, and

i'm sure we have a couple of more, a general manager of a car dealer, ms. craft from the area, and of course, our wonderful chair, president of the northern verge urban league laverne chapman. regina kelly, the subject of the movie american violet. >> you have an extensive list of women that touch us in so many areas of our lives. >> we have a good mother award. this year it's being received by peter harvey. we are honoring him, because as an attorney general, he worked very hard on domestic violence. that's one of our projects. we honored him. last year we were honored that have kami brown. >> thank you for honoring him.

>> we are probably the only organization in town that has a $75 fundraising ticket. that's the general admission. there are corporate tickets, member tickets, and general membership tickets, general public tickets. they are selling pretty fast this year. when they hear about the honorees, people want to bring their young children, especially young women to meet these people. they can meet the young lady that flew across the country. >> thank you for joining me. >> we hope to see you there this year. >> my pleasure, definitely. my guest has been dr. faye williams national chair of the national congress of black women. if you're interested in what comcast is doing in your area, go to on demand and click local.

for comcast local edition, i'm donna richardson.

right now on "showbiz tonight," the unbelievable jennifer/megan smackdown. jennifer aniston, megan fox. tonight, "showbiz tonight" with the incredible true story, why both of them may have woken up this morning thinking, what the heck hit me? and how did that happen? john edwards brand-new baby drama. a startling new report that says edwards may finally fess up to being the daddy of a love child. and the incredible connection between edwards' affair and a brand-new blockbuster tv show.

tonight, "showbiz tonight" with today's brand-new jaw-dropping claims in the john edwards' baby drum. plus, heidi klum, eight months pregnant and the talk of the emmys. how heidi rocked the red carpet. tv's most provocative entertainment news show starts right now. hello, i'm a.j. hammer broadcasting tonight and every night from new york city. and tonight, stranger than fiction. talk about timing. we were all on pins and needles today waiting to find out if john edwards was really going to finally admit he is the father of the baby born to his mistress. there's an explosive new report edwards is going to finally fess up, and it comes just one day before cbs introduces a new primetime drama called "the good wife." the show is all about a politician who's also caught with his pants down, so to speak.

and how his wife handles it. and "showbiz tonight" can tell you that the timing of the show and the new report about edwards led to big news breaking today. >> i need to atone for my personal failings with my wife, alicia, and my two children. >> this week we are seeing the debut of "the good wife," a tv drama about a couple torn apart by a politician husband's sex scandal. >> hey, you all right? >> but "showbiz tonight" can tell you, this tv drama has nothing on the real-life sex scandal of former presidential candidate john edwards. >> what's going on in real life with politicians is actually a lot juicier, especially considering the news about john edwards that's coming out this week. >> what does the edwards' drama have that this tv drama doesn't? how about a paternity issue that according to brand-new reports is about to explode again. and a betrayed wife that's dying of cancer. and according to new reports, even the dave matthew's band is

involved. "showbiz tonight" can tell you the john edwards scandal shows us when it comes to a good sex scandal, hollywood can't touch real life. >> they always say art imitates life and this is a prime example of that. >> various reports over the weekend suggest john edwards is very close to finally admitting that the baby born to rielle hunter, the woman edwards had an affair with during his presidential campaign, is really his child. >> in 2006, 2 years ago, i made a very serious mistake. >> last year when he finally confessed to the affair on "night line" after spending months denying it, edwards said there's no way the baby could be his. >> i know it's not possible this child could be mine because of the timing of events. so i know it's not possible. >> to make matters even worse, a recent "new york times" article features a jaw-dropping claim about edwards' affair with

hunter. in a book proposal, a former aide to edwards claims that during their affair edwards promised hunter he'd marry her after his wife, elizabeth, died and that the dave matthews band would play at their wedding. >> i'm not sure how dave matthews and the band feels about being pulled into all of this. >> kim serafin of "in touch weekly" tells "showbiz tonight," that dave matthews allegation, whether true or not, strikes a chord with those following the edwards drama. >> it seems so typical of a cheating guy. i'll make it up to you. i'll buy you a diamond ring. i'll buy you roses. you can take my credit card and go shopping. the dave matthews band will play at our wedding. >> you know what i don't get? why you stood by him. i would have stuck a knife in his heart. >> on "the good wife," the husband's scandal forces the character to go back to work. >> you have some very prominent baggage, but if she can do it, so can you. >> in the edwards' drama, elizabeth edwards is in a more desperate situation, battling terminal cancer. >> i think it is a betrayal.

and i think that john thinks that it is. >> on "larry king live" back in may, larry king asked elizabeth edwards why she stays with her husband. >> a marriage is, we all know this, it's hard work. you put it together and you work very hard on it and parts that come in good and bad include, for john, that he is an extraordinarily good man. >> i think everyone's so quick to judge these women. i know i was. >> on regis and kelly this morning, the star of "the good wife," giuliani marguiles expressed sympathy for women in elizabeth edwards' situation. >> you forget children are involved and a family. we have no idea what goes on behind closed doors. >> which is the biggest difference between "the good wife" and the edwards scandal. only one of them involves real people and real heart ache. >> it's just really sad and it's a real tragedy, not a comedy, not a primetime drama. it's just a tragedy. >> sad indeed.

while there are a lot of connections between the edwards baby drama and "the good wife," not everything's the same. joining me in hollywood, carlos diaz, correspondent for "extra." also joining me tonight in new york, lauren lake, an attorney and author of the brand-new book, "girl, let me tell you." elizabeth edwards stays with john edwards despite his cheating. in "the good wife," the character starts over after her husband's sex scandal. carlos, if john edwards winds up confessing to being the father of his lover's baby, i'm guessing with a whole lot of people are going to say, elizabeth, you have got to leave him. >> let's make one thing perfectly clear. john edwards is scum. okay? he defines the word scum. elizabeth edwards deserves a medal for how she's handled this. if she was not facing terminal cancer, i would say dump his butt, go around the country and talk about how much scum he really is. how much longer does she have? does she want to spend her last days on this planet with hate,

with, you know, wanting to dump this guy? she's been so amazing thus far, why not keep that incredible attitude going and just fill your life with love and just, you know, blow him off for the jerk that he is and spend time with, you know, focusing on your own kids. she has been unbelievable through all this. >> i agree 100%, carlos, with what you're saying. i have a feeling a lot of people out there looking at it from the sidelines are thinking, at least lighten the load for whatever time you have left. this morning, julianna margulies was on regis and kelly, promoting "the good wife." hear what she said today that sometimes people jump to conclusions when they see the wives of unfaithful politicians standing by their men. take a look. >> i think everyone's so quick to judge these women. i know i was. i really was. i was like, don't stand there. what are you doing? until you're in those shoes you don't know and i think you forget, also, there's children involved and a family. we have no idea what goes on

behind closed doors. >> all true again. children are involved here. john and elizabeth edwards have three kids together. lauren lake, let me ask you, despite that, if john edwards does turn out to be the daddy, do you think elizabeth should leave him? >> absolutely not. i think elizabeth has earned the right to have one thing and one thing only on her mind, which is how to live another day and live it well. having lost my mother to breast cancer, i don't play this armchair quarterbacking of what she should or should not do. she needs to enjoy her days the way she sees fit. and everybody else needs to sit down and shut. up. >> well said. let's move on. another big story "showbiz tonight" has been tracking all day. john travolta's agony. a trial began in the bahamas today. this is such a hideous story. two people accused of trying to extort millions of dollars from the travoltas after their son died. i want to roll out the "showbiz

news line here. january 22nd when travolta's son died in the bahamas after suffering a seizure. january 23rd, two people accused of demanding $25 million from travolta over secret documents related to how his son died. today the trial begins. travolta's expected to testify at the trial. it is only now that the devastated travolta family's been slowly reemerging publicly. we've been seeing them in sort of dribs and drabs recently. my heart goes out to them. it has since the start of this whole thing. carlos, i would have to imagine having to relive this in such a public way, it's going to devastate them all over again. >> you know, every celebrity out there that has felt the sting of extortion needs to salute john travolta. he's not doing this in his backyard. he's going to get on a plane, probably fly the plane down to the bahamas, and then, like you say, have to relive his son's death, when anyone would give him a free pass to say, you know, john, you've been through a lot, we don't expect you to do this.

it shows what kind of amazing person john travolta really is. saying to the people, you're not going to get away with this. >> lauren lake, as the attorney, give me some insight here. do they have to put travolta through the agony all over again and have him testify to make the case? >> i'm sure they talked it over with him and said, are you prepared for this, are you up for this? and he said yes. that all depends on the evidence. let's be honest. if they have a whole bunch of circumstantial evidence, testimony from travolta is really going to matter. so i think by him coming back, i think it was crucial to the case and that's why he's doing it. >> and perhaps, just perhaps he gets through this, puts his own effort into getting through this and they'll have a little closure and start getting on with their lives. thanks so much, guys. all right. it's a paula abdul/kate gosselin smackdown tonight. paula and kate going head to head in a battle of epic proportions. who won and why? i have got the answer. also, the jennifer

aniston/megan fox smackdown. why both of them probably woke up this morning wondering what the heck just hit me? is jessica simpson having the worst year ever? her dog, gone. her boyfriend, gone. sounds like a bad country song. then there were those mom jeans. poor jess. this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. here comes the show biz news ticker. more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now. >> people are like, maybe they should have honored somebody whose show is still on, but i think the fact the academy just represented something that touched a lot of people and i'm just so happy for our show. ring ring ring ring.

hey, your chicken noodles ringing. ring ring. progresso.

hi, may i speak to my oggy please? thank you. i'm sorry, who? my grandma. this is obviously her chicken noodle soup. only hers tastes like this. just put my oggy on the phone. thanks so much. hold one moment please. another person calling for her grandmother. she thinks it's her soup huh? i'm told she's in the garden picking herbs. she is so cute. okay well i'll hold. she's holding. wha? she's holding. tell her its karen. (announcer) progresso. you gotta taste this soup. without my makeup. now, it's no problem. (announcer) neutropéna tone correcting night serum

with high performance soy to even skin tone and active retinol to speed cell turn over. clinically shown to visibly fade brown spots in 14 nights. i even out my skin at night so it looks younger, flawless in the morning. (announcer) neutrogena tone correcting now you can fade and prevent discolorations all day. new tone correcting spf 30. welcome back to "showbiz tonight." i'm a.j. hammer in new york. tonight, jessica's very bad year. jessica simpson just ended her heartbreaking week-long search

for her beloved maltipoo, daisy, who was snatched by a coyote last tuesday. but "showbiz tonight" can reveal this was yet another tough blow for jessica in what really has been a terrible year for her. let's fire up the showbiz news line. back in january, jessica wears high-waisted jeans at a concert. it launches a million mean headlines calling her fat. in february, jessica burst into tears and has a mini meltdown after forgetting the lyrics to her own song at her own concert. in july, on the night before her 29th birthday, jessica gets dumped by her boyfriend, dallas cowboys' quarterback, tony romo. and that's got to hurt. with me, megan alexander, a correspondent for "inside edition," and with me, an entertainment journalist for fivedollarprep.com. meagan, i laid it all out. really a bad, bad year for jessica. you've got to feel sorry for her. >> i do. part of me want to say, jessica, keep doing what you're doing, though. this is great material for country music. got dumped by her man, battling weight issues and she lost her job.

and i love country music. she should keep going. on the other hand, people are not that forgiving. you can only forget the lyrics once or twice, a.j. she needs to get it together. this has happened too much. >> hila, let me ask you. i do feel badly for her, but there are a lot of people out there, who say, you know what, she kind of brings a lot of it on herself. where's your sympathy level? >> absolutely. i want to take you back. this is karma for nick lachey. this is her dumping one of the greatest husbands in the world, a guy willing to move his own stuff, put up with her crazy things and then dumps the guy. doesn't even let the guy see her on thanksgiving. this is karma coming back to bite her in the mom jean's butt. >> interesting theory there. it seems as the year was moving on, jessica, perhaps, was starting to bounce back from getting dumped by tony romo in july. but she's a text texan, a huge cowboys fan even though he dumped her.

last night before the cowboys game, kicking off their new stadium, nationwide tv, jessica went to twitter. first home game of the season in the new stadium, go cowboys. you remember when diehard cowboys fans were calling jessica a jinx when she was dating tony romo. well, even though they're split, there are some people online today who are actually blaming her for the cowboy's season opening loss last night. people, why do you think that people think it's okay to be mean to jessica like this? it's not true. she didn't jinx them! >> i lived in texas. those texan fans are tried and true. i think you have to be careful here, jessica. i think she needs to take a break, go into hiatus, collect herself, think about who she really wants to be. once a cowboys fan, always a cowboy fan. if anybody thinks that she's messing with the cowboys, that's something she doesn't want to get in front of. so i would back off. >> maybe just in secret she's at home with a crystal ball putting a voodoo on them or something like that. however, it's not all been bad news. a very high note for jessica, a very successful fashion line in macy's. a big star-studded commercial to help her promote the brand, making fun of her own dumb image

and her recent breakup. hyla, are you with me hoping that by christmas, jessica is going to have a new man in her christmas stocking and more good news? >> the ball's in her court. it's up to her. don't date athletes. they all cheat. don't wear something called mom jeans. you're not going to look good in them. they're decisions she's making. it's up for her. >> meagan, if she takes your advice, goes on a hiatus, do you think it's good news for jessica from here on out? >> a.j., america loves a comeback. you've just got to be ready for it. so we're crossing our fingers for her. take your time, jessica. do it right. >> do it right, jessica. megan alexander, hyla, i appreciate you being with us tonight. and the showbiz on call lines have been getting jammed up. so many people have been calling on whether kate gosselin is exploiting her children.

our showbiz on call operators have contacted me to let me know they feel exploited themselves working 12-hour days, no breaks, fielding all those calls from outraged "showbiz tonight" viewers. a call from showbiz on call from lisa in pennsylvania. lisa says kate needs to shut up and stay home. >>. >> caller: i just think that she should be staying at home and being a parent. there are a lot of people out there who have many children. i don't think they need to exploit their children in order to make money. i think she should just go ahead and live a normal life like everybody else. >> i'm right there with you. lisa, thanks for your call. we also heard from jennifer who called into showbiz on call from florida, who said kate is just trying to support her family. >> caller: people keep saying stuff about she's exploiting her children. anybody who's got any kids would be doing the same thing. she's not exploiting those kids. she has eight kids. she needs that care somehow. you know she can't take care of them without that tv show. >> jennifer, appreciate your call. please do remember, the showbiz on call phone lines are open all the time. give us a buzz at 1-888-sbt-buzz.

if you've thought about doing it but never done it, do it now. leave us a voice mail. we'll play your call here on "showbiz tonight" and post it, too. your calls to show biz on call are on our home page at cnn.com/showbiztonight. kate gosselin facing opposition that goes way beyond what we've been hearing on the on call phone lines. tonight, the paula abdul/kate gosselin smackdown. their big battle. who won and why? i've got the answers. and beyonce's emotional tribute to an 11-year-old girl who has leukemia. i'm going to play the whole thing for you. but here's a fair warning, grab a box of kleenex, because it's going to leave you in tears. heidi klum, talk of the emmys. eight months pregnant and looking fantastic. this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. time now for the showbiz news ticker. more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now.

>> you know, you win and then you get whisked into this plethora of interviews and you really -- you're kind of figuring it out as you're talking. as i'm talking to you, i'm still kind of figuring out what it feels like. liners, with wings!tection absorb ten times more, like a pad but feel thin and comfy, like a liner. new carefree® ultra protection™ boss: come on in, i had some other things you can tell people about geico - great claims service and a 97% customer satisfaction rate. show people really trust us. gecko: yeah right, that makes sense. boss: trust is key when talking about geico. you gotta feel it. why don't you and i practice that with a little exercise where i fall backwards and you catch me.

gecko: uh no sir, honestly... uh...i don't think...uh... boss: no, no. we can do this. gecko: oh dear. vo: geico. fifteen minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. - hello! - ha! why don't you try a home cooked meal... with yummy hamburger helper? oh! tada! fantastically tasty, huh? ummm, it's good. what would you guys like? hamburger helper. what?! one pound... one pan... one tasty meal! your hair mixes with pollen and dust in the air. i get congested. my eyes itch. i have to banish you to the garden. but now with zyrtec-d®, i have the proven allergy relief of zyrtec®, plus a powerful decongestant. i can breathe freer with zyrtec-d®. so, i'll race you to our favorite chair. i might even let you win. zyrtec-d® lets me breathe easier, so i can love the air™. zyrtec-d®. behind the pharmacy counter. no prescription needed.

now on "showbiz tonight." jennifer aniston, megan fox. they're gorgeous, they're huge stars, but tonight, "showbiz tonight" reveals why they had the worst weekend ever. it's the aniston/fox smack down. also, the brand-new paula abdul/kate gosselin smackdown. they're big reality stars. they're both looking for work. tonight, who won this battle and why. beyonce's tear-jerking tribute to an 11-year-old battling leukemia. it is so emotional and i'm playing it for you. plus, more stories breaking from the showbiz news ticker. tv's most provocative entertainment news show continues right now.

welcome back to "showbiz tonight." it's 30 minutes past the hour. i'm a.j. hammer broadcasting tonight and every night from new york city. tonight, it is the jen and megan smack down. both jennifer aniston and megan fox may have had the worst weekends ever. they must have been woken up this morning with raging headaches and deep regrets. why, you ask? no, not because one of them had a bad one-night stand. because both woke up to devastating news, more devastating than they could ever have imagined. both of them got a smackdown like none other. and there's another big smackdown brand-new tonight. between kate gosselin and paula abdul. which woman would you rather see with her own talk show? we asked you to vote on air and online. you're not going to believe the results. it's a paula versus kate smack down. let the smackdown begin. joining us tonight in hollywood,

carlos diaz, correspondent for "extra." in new york, lauren lake, attorney and author of this book, "girl, let me tell you." let's start off with the jennifer aniston/megan fox smackdown. two of the biggest female stars in hollywood. both of them with new movies that opened up this weekend after quite frankly doing more publicity than any human being should be allowed to do. aniston, of course, in "love happens," fox had "jennifer's body," and both movies tanked. lost out big-time to an animated movie, "cloudy with a chance of meatballs." carlos, what does this say about jennifer aniston and megan fox? i don't think this should have happened. >> let's get one thing straight, "cloudy with a chance of meatballs" is a great movie and it stars mr. t. that's why it made $30 million. but listen, love happens in every jennifer aniston movie. there's a great-looking body in every one of maygone fox's movies. we've seen it all before and i think this is our indication we want some variety. >> yeah.

i guess, you know, just when they do these big publicity splashes, you at least expect a huge opening and then maybe they'll trail off. i think you have to point there. aniston's "love happens" came in in fourth place. made about $8 million 7. fox's "jennifer's body" came in fifth place. made around $7 million. matt damon in "the informant" beating both of them. lauren, what do you think the deal is? did people reach their limit with jen and meagan? >> i have to feel like they need new tunes to sing. especially jennifer. it's time for reinvention. we have all been on the team aniston for so long with the whole thing with her relationship and marriage and everyone has felt sorry for her. she came out, told all her business again. it's kind of like, you know what? this, like, song is on repeat and we want to change the cd. so i think they just need new songs to sing and reinvention. >> to that point, i do feel bad for jen, because she did put herself out there. she put herself almost in the vulnerable position because of

the subject matter of the movie, doing all this press, answering tons of personal questions about her own love life, as you mentioned there, lauren. listen to what she told "showbiz tonight" when she revealed to us what she needs to fall in love. >> i think relinquish control. i don't think it's something you can control or really choose. i mean, i think it sort of chooses you. being open to what form it comes in. what package it's delivered to you in. >> jennifer's fans have been fascinated with her love life, especially after the big public breakups with vince and brad and even john mary. separate from the content of the movies do you think fans may have hit their limit with jen's love advice? i think we've seen her doll it out before. >> would somebody put a gun in jennifer aniston's hand, please? i want to see her in an action film, seriously. that's -- we have hit our limit, as far as the romantic comedies. in fact, we need jennifer

aniston and megan fox to switch roles. we need to see megan fox in a romantic comedy and jennifer aniston in that kick-butt, summer "transformers" kind of thing. jennifer aniston having her shooting people. >> putting a gun in angelina jolie's hand worked in "mr. & mrs. smith," worked, in so many different ways. last week paula did a great job, hosting "diva's life." kate cohosting "the view" while preparing to shoot a talk show pilot. here's what we asked you in our "showbiz tonight" question of the day. talk show showdown. who would you rather see get her own tv show? look at that. 71% of you said paula abdul. only 29% voted for kate. lauren, people spoke loud and clear here. does it surprise you? so many more people would rather watch paula hosting a shows than kate? >> if you saw clips of each, i did catch kate on "the view" and a little bit of paula. and i will say that paula far

outshined kate. kate was a bit lackluster. and i try to give kudos to women in any way i can, especially a woman trying to get her hustle going. but right there, kate, i don't think i want to watch you every day talking. it was boring. >> not to mention people are tired of her from the whining going on. and the showbiz phone lines, people have not been shy. people are calling in. the lines are blowing up over this. who would you rather see host their own show? paula or kate? this is what jennifer from alabama tells us. she's all fired up. listen. >> caller: i would love to see kate gosselin get her own show. i think she's very smart and she's got a lot going for her. whereas paula abdul is a train wreck waiting to happen. >> not everybody agrees. laurie from new jersey e-mailed us to say this, "if kate gosselin got her own tv show, i would consider unsubscribing to cable or at the very least, figuring out how to remove that

channel from my lineup. paula's show would not be any better, but at least she is a celebrity because of her talent, not because of her divorce." let's be clear, paula abdul also celebrity because she is a train wreck. >> exactly. i would love to see a paula abdul talk show. because you're just waiting for that show to unravel. you're waiting for the day that paula shows up and it's just not all there. as far as the whole kate thing goes, telepictures is talking about having her doing a show, "mom logic." i think telepictures should consider her for doing "the bachelorette." # i would watch that show. >> what would she have to do? couldn't be a straight formatted talk show. what would the big deal be about kate sits around interviewing people or doing recipes? >> great in a talk show that dealt how do be a mom. she's got that down as far as eight kids. mothers could relate to her. if you're looking at a target

demo of an audience during the day of moms watching with, i think it's a creative combination. >> here's one idea that the "jimmy kimmel live!" show came up with. i think this is a good one. >> 16 desperate single women, one available guy. kate gosselin presents who wants to be the underaged slut who has sex with my ex-husband above the garage? >> there's a title for you right there. lauren lake, what do you say? i mean, in all seriousness, if kate gosselin becomes the host of her own show she's going to become the butt of every late night joke. certainly will provide a lot of fodder if nothing else. >> she will. however, she is a woman with eight kids and going to be single soon. she's going to need a way to make money. the problem is she's going to need to use that money to get some coaching. because from what i saw, it was just a tad bit limp. >> just didn't do it for you. all right, lauren lake, carlos diaz, thank you for your input and we'll see if that jimmy kimmel show that they came up

with actually comes to fruition. that would be interesting. now let me turn it over to you. here's our "showbiz tonight" question of the day. pulling no punches here, jennifer aniston's new movie flops. are you surprised? keep voting at cnn.com/showbiztonight or e-mail us more of your thoughts at "showbiz tonighshowbiztonight@ m showbiztonight@cnn.com. i have always thought that beyonce was a class act, look what she did for taylor swift at the mtv vmas after kanye west acted like a total jerk and stole her moment. i've got to share this with you. beyonce's tribute to an 11-year-old girl who is battling leukemia. it is so heart wrenching. i'll play it for you. and you know who everybody's talking about from the emmys? heidi klum. look at her now. she always looks amazing, but nowing amonths pregnant and walking the red carpet. wow. and the world's tallest man making awl roker look teeny, tiny. al, ask this guy what the

weather's like in his neck of the woods. this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. it's time now for the showbiz news ticker. more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now. some people have ratings and some people have prizes and you have ratings and prizes. you selfish bastard. >> i am a selfish bastard. tonight i am -- you guys got so much, though.an how many emmys do you people need? >> all we can get our hands on. in new sun crystals ® . , the only 100% natural sweetener made with pure cane sugar and stevia.

finally, all the sweetness of nature and just 5 calories a packet. nature gave us the recipe; we just gave it a name. new sun crystals ® all natural sweetener. two natural wonders. one sweet taste™. s it hard to breathe. but now that i'm breathing better with advair... i can enjoy the zoo with my grandkids. (announcer) for people with copd including chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or both, great news. advair helps significantly improve lung function. while nothing can reverse copd, advair is different from most other medications because it contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator working together to help you breathe better. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition

or high blood pressure before taking advair. we had a great day, grandpa! we sure did. ask your doctor how advair helps improve lung function for better breathing. (announcer) find out how to get your first full prescription free at advaircopd.com. ( music throughout ) hey bets, can i borrow a quarter, sure, still not dry? i'm trng to shrink them. i lost weight and now some clothes are too big.

how did you do it? simple stuff. eating right and i switched to whole grain. whole grain... studies show that people who eat more whole grain tend to have a healthier body weight. multigrain cheerios has five whole grains... and 110 calories per lightly sweetened serving. more grains. less you. multigrain cheerios. new carefree ultra protection liners, with wings! absorb ten times more, like a pad but feel thin and comfy, like a liner. new carefree® ultra protection™ did you see this? it's a kayak race. oh, no, not just any ordinary race, it's a cardboard kayak race. to enter, you had to build your kayak out of cardboard and use only duct tape to keep it together. part of the caldwell indian creek festival in idaho. welcome back to "showbiz

tonight." i'm a.j. hammer in new york. did you see this? dramatic new video today. beyonce fighting back tears singing to a little girl who's battling leukemia. ♪ it was pretty remarkable. brand new video today of beyonce's tear jerker in australia as she serenades a very sick little girl. did you see this? oh, baby! heidi klum rocked the red carpet at the emmys. get this -- she was eight months pregnant. it is must-see mommy tv. today, your first look at the world's tallest man with al roker. look at that. bet this guy could probably tell the weather better than al. joining me tonight in new york, megan alexander, a correspondent for "inside edition." also in hollywood, hyla, an entertainment journalist for fivedollarprep.com. begin with the beyonce video. we found it on youtube today. it's beyonce at one of her concerts in s s in sydney, aust

and serenading a little girl whose name is chelsea and she sufferin suffers from leukemia. beyonce customized her hit song "halo" just for chelsey. you're going to want to bust out your kleenex for this. roll it, charles. ♪ ♪ >> i can tell you right now there was not a dry eye in the house. megan, a off to you. is this just one of the most touching things you have ever seen? beyonce can do no wrong in my mind. >> i heard the phrase, talent is your gift from god, how you use is is your gift to god. the heavens are smiling down on beyonce right now. that little girl is going through what no child should ever have to go through. she needed to feel like a star and beyonce did just that. she's awesome.

>> a little later on if you watch the video, the little girl with leukemia hugged beyonce and just broke down in tears. hyla, obviously, beyonce made this little girl's dream come true. and i know beyonce well enough to know that she didn't do it so we would be here talking about her today. she did it because it was from the heart. >> absolutely right. she's a genuine person. you can tell the way she's holding her, singing to her. no joke. i've been carrying these around with me all day. it's a powerful video. it really, really is. it will bring any big man down to his knees. >> the same brand we keep in our studio out there in hollywood. we came across something else today that made us say, did you see this? i got to show you this. "showbiz tonight" there at the emmys sunday night. oh, baby, so was heidi klum. check it out. today everybody talking about heidi's baby on board. heidi strutted on to the emmy red carpet eight months pregnant wearing that form-fitting gown. megan, do you think women all across the country were just watching her on emmy night saying, right on, heidi.

>> oh, my gosh. right on, heidi. you go, girl. if i can only hope to look half that good when i'm pregnant some day, a.j. she's going to have her fourth baby. she's got a good looking husband. this is a tight dress at eight months pregnant. i thought she looked incredible celebrating, a soon-to-mother, i thought it was just awesome. >> we've seen pregnant women on the carpet in the past. eight months. they had to have an exit plan i'm sure. did you see this? another big story everybody talking about today. al roker absolutely dwarfed by the world's tallest man. look at that picture. you've got to see how they opened up the "today" show this morning. this is great. >> and tall guy. we'll introduce you to the world's tallest man. all 8 feet, 1 inch of him today, monday, september 21st, 2009. >> that is 27-year-old sultan kossan. he's 8'1", wears a size 22 shoe.

today he was recognized as the world's tallest man by guinness booked of wor booked of world records. al roker also posted a photo on his twitter page today. you interviewed this guy, was it just surreal standing there with him? had to be something incredible. >> it really was. what was interesting about him, too, i learned he had a hard time as a younger guy in his teens dealing with being so tall. he finally decided to embrace it. embrace his uniqueness which i think is really neat message for everyone. you know, that he's embracing, that he's different. he's embracing his celebrity and kicking off a world tour now and traveling all over. >> can we throw up, charles, the picture al roker put on his twitter page today? i'm looking at this and it looks fake. that's real. that's not post-produced or anything like that. hyla, do you think sultan might have the edge on al roker giving the weather forecast. >> even old al, who would still have been impressive, but this guy needs to come out to hollywood. a reality show at least. i think he can bank his look.

>> sounds like a good guy, too. megan alexander, hyla, appreciate your being with us tonight. i must tell you heidi klum's gorgeous pregnant belly was just one of the many things the stars were talking about at the emmy awards. it was also obama-mania last night. check out former young and the restless star's dress. "showbiz tonight" right there on the emmy red carpet. look what we spotted victoria wearing. she is sporting obama couture. we also caught up with another big obama fan,ally fields. sally, as you know, never been shy about opening up when it comes to politics. listen to her go off on the debate surrounding obama's health care plan when we caught up with her at the hbo post-emmy party. >> there will be those people who attack him. some of these people are completely insane and need to be taken right away and the health care system needs to be applied to them, because they're

mentally ill and they need some help. but then others, you know, it's legitimate that we should be having this debate, that should have been going on a long time ago. and he's really bringing it about. speaks her mind. as we move on tonight, it really is showbiz smackdown monday night. jennifer aniston, megan fox, paula abdul and kate gosselin. why not? let's go for three. tonight, mariah carey's brand new attack on eminem. i assure you, no vision of love here. why can't mariah just let this go? this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. time now for the showbiz news ticker. more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now.

i want to share this award with her, because, you know, they're inseparable and drew and i as actors are inseparable. it's actually you know -- you can't have one without the other. so -- this is partly hers. kelly saunder's nature valley. ♪ the place that inspires her to go faster... ♪ and slower. ♪ elk mountains, colorado. where's yours? 100% natural nature valley granola bars. the taste nature intended. ♪ bicycle, what are we waiting for? the flowers are blooming. the air is sweet.

and zyrtec® starts... relieving my allergies... 2 hours faster than claritin®. my worst symptoms feel better, indoors and outdoors. with zyrtec®, the fastest... 24-hour allergy medicine, i promise not to wait as long to go for our ride. zyrtec® works fast, so i can love the air™. proclaims "gq" magazine. did you see that? the interior "positively oozes class," raves "car magazine." "slick and sensuous," boasts "the washington times." "the most striking vw in recent memory," declares-- okay, i get it already. i think we were in a car commercial. ♪ yeah ♪ yeah.

deadly floods sending people rushing for higher ground in the southeast. incredible pictures of the devastation. a former presidential choond admitted cheating on his wife may offer another confession. what he could say about the other woman and her child. a teenager gets a text message telling her to kill herself. what police, parents and school, doing about that. hln "news and views" starts right now. thank you for joining us. i'm virginia cha. and the emergency management agency says it's a mess. in georgia, at least eight people were killed. schools closed throughout

northern georgia. urging people to stay off the roads if possible. a lot of roads washed out. others under water. in one suburb, a flooded house actually caught on fire, and the fire tlauk responded to the call got caught in the rising water. you can see it right there. refugees using small boats, canoes and jet skis to get people to safety. live pictures the day after. you can see the truck isn't going anywhere and you see the fire out but the house destroyed. meantime, take a look at a couple of guys trying to be ingenious about it using mattresses. air mattresses, to get back into a flooded home trying to get their stuff. virtually all of georgia is under a flash flood watch still. still flash flood warnings are posted. the water almost submerged the roller coasters. that's what you're looking at. this is six flags over georgia west of atlanta. looks more like a water park here. governor sonny perdue declared a

state of emergency. asking for federal disaster relief and more storms are forecast on the way. meantime, georgia i-reporter daniel says video and words alone cannot capture the feeling of seeing familiar neighborhoods covered in eight feet of water. yeah. that's the roads and yards. he says he was especially moved by this rescue when someone brought in the a canoe to help stranded residents in snellville. he calls it an awesome experience to watch everyone working together. after leaving this scene, he and his friends followed the yellow river to check out other areas saying the flooding was beyond anything he ever seen. meanwhile, i-reporter eric brown says the sight of rising water in woodstock, georgia, was overwhelming and frightening and admits it was a bit of an adrenaline rush. this video shows a local breaching dam sweeping along mud and trees. several roads washed out. the damage itself, structural

damage. and i-reporter rachel says there are no natural waterfalls in her neighborhood but you couldn't tell by looking at this overflowing lake which created an impressive one there. seeing it was like watching a "when disaster happens" documentaries on tv. 's in a word, scary. now if you are in the flood zone and make sure you stay safe doing it though, please. we'd love to hear from you and see your photos or videos. head over to i-report doin com whenever you have breaking news. click the upload button and it will give easy instructions. senator report byrd was taken to the hospital today after a fall in his home in the d.c. area. the spokesman says the 91-year-old west virginia democrat apparently stood up too fast and fell. byrd's caregiver called and ambulance to be safe. byrd is being examined. for now, no indication he'll be admitted. byrd has been in frail health in recent years. help is the longest serving

senator in history. so the fbi and the department of homeland security issued security bulletins for sports stadium, entertainment complexes and hotels. these memos to police don't mention any specific terror plots or the latest arrests in denver and new york, but say the sites are still attractive targets to groups of al qaeda. the beauten recommend police sweep and patrols at terminals and stations. the warning coincides with a rising terror investigation. sources tell cnn agents are looking for about a dozen people for questioning with an alleged flot blow up transportation hubs. three men already taken into custody over are the weekend two in denver, fwhun new york. right now they are the only ones charged, and they're charged with lying to authorities. right now, police are on their way to haiti to question a florida man accused of killing his entire family. his wife and five children found dead in their home saturday in

what police describe as a horrific scene. the children ranged in age from 11 months to 9 years old. authorities captured demoss yesterday. charged with six counts of murder. they asked the haitian government to extradite him to the united states. former presidential candidate john edwards may be changing his story about an affair with a campaign worker. some of edwards' associates say he could soon claim paternity of hunter's daughter. they would wait to the see how things unfold before making a statement. you may remember edwards publicly denying being the father in an interview on abc last year. >> i know that's not possible that this child could be mine, because of the timing of events. so i know it's not possible. happy to take a paternity test and would love to see it happen. >> a friend of hunter's says the affair was still going on when hunter got pregnant. a north carolina grand jury is

investigating whether edwards misused campaign funds to cover up the affair. if he is indicted and convicted, he could face up to five years in jail. president obama told other world leaders today that the u.s. is determined to act against global warming. today u.n. summit on climbed change, promoted his plans to develop clean energy sources and reduce green house gas emissions. >> this morning too many years mankind has been slow to respond or even recognize the magnitude of the climate threat. is true of my own country as well. we recognize that. but this is a new day. it is a new era, and i am proud to say that the united states has done more to promote clean energy and reduce carbon pollution in the last eight months than at any other time in our history. >> president obama called on rapidly growing developing countries to do their part to fight global warming as well. this, by the way, was his first speech to the united nations. we'd like to ask you, do you

agree with the president? do you think the u.s. needs to do more to combat climate change or do you believe the affects of global warming are overblown and any money put towards it would be a waste? call us with your views at 1-877-hil-hln and e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. and send a text, the word views plus comments and name to hln-tv. by the way, standard rates apply. we will start airing responses shortly, and throughout the afternoon. it has been seven months since little haleigh cummings vanished without a trace. what could put her father's new wife misty back in the hot seat. plus more on the deadly flooding across georgia and one area devastated by the high water. stay with us. we'll be right back.

stunning developments in the

case of the little girl haleigh cummings, missing in florida for seven months, and this could put the spotlight back on the stepmom, misty. misty's brother recently arrest and a gun charge and reportedly broke down under police questioning. tommy cross lynne says he went to ronald cummings home the night haleigh vanished in february and says ronald asked him to go because he couldn't get ahold of misty. the brother says he repeatedly pound and the door, no one opened it. misty cross lynne admitted sheed been home all night. tucked haillee into bed, woke up five hours later to find haleigh gone and the back door open. nancy grace was told police are holding tommy in jail hoping he'll keep talking. >> tommy tells the detectives with the putnam sheriff's office ronald called him from work stating he wanted tom toy go down and check on the trailer. he'd not been able to reach

misty since they got on a fight on the telephone. about the 10:00 hour. agrees and goes down to the trailer. tells police he banged on the door and he got no answer. he looked inside through the windows. saw no light, no television. did not hear a sound. it was quiet. according to police he stopped just short of saying, no one was at home. >> no suspects have been named in the disappearance of haleigh rum gz at this point. police consider it still to be a missing person's case. in antioch, california, investigators digging again for lou cloous on the property of nancy and phillip garrido. live pictures. the couple charged with kidnapping jaycee dugard and holding her 18 years. boneses were found and this property. police are hoping to find evidence in the cases of two other missing girls. before his arrest, garrido told business associates he made an unbelievable discovery.

we'll shue you a picture. a black box with jacks for headphones. he showed it off to business customers and made eye-popping claim about this box. >> when he first brought it in, he said this box you can hear voices from the other side. you can hear people telling you how, what -- what's going to happen and what the future says. >> garrido apparently said the box let him talk to people without speaking. he and his wife pleaded not guilty in the dugard kidnapping case. an exciting addition to our primetime lineup coming your way next week. "the joy behar show" airs every night, 9:00 p.m. eastern right here on hln. a good taste of what you'll get, her moment of joy commentary. >> you know, unless you're a professional kickboxer or a traveling salesman way fetish, there's no real reason for an adult to ever engage in spanking

pap new study says there are actually parents who are spanking a 1-year-old child. now, what could a 1-year-old possibly do to deserve being spanked? come home drunk after a date? lose the family fortune playing the ponies? start a war under false pretenses? in my opinion there's nothing a child can do that warrants parents spanking them. young children pee, poop and throw food. okay. so did my uncle louis at the olive garden, but that's another story, because he drinks. it's the parents' job to teach them right from wrong and commune dmat a manner that doesn't involve bruising physically or psychological. the philosopher rene, i dated him, he didn't say i spanked therefore i am. he said i think therefore i am. so when your children start carrying on and screaming and yelling, and driving you crazy, don't lift your hand to them. lift your mind and think it

through. spanking your children won't make them love or respect you. it will make them fear and resent you. do want to be a parent or a network executive? i believe spanking is abuse. hopefully that's not just me. >> "the joy behar show" starts tuesday, september 29th, next week, 9:00 p.m. eastern right here on hln. a case of one good samaritan and the state doing due diligence or is it a family of memories turned into a parents' worse nightmare. a picture may say is 1,000 words. what is one picture saying in this case involving children. we'll let you know. plus keeping an eye on the deadly flooding around atlanta including a live report from georgia showing a picture of the house that burned and the fire trucknt that got stuck in the water trying to save it.th i get congested. my eyes itch. i have to banish you to the garden. but now with zyrtec-d®, i have the proven allergy relief of zyrtec®,

plus a powerful decongestant. i can breathe freer with zyrtec-d®. so, i'll race you to our favorite chair. i might even let you win. zyrtec-d® lets me breathe easier, so i can love the air™. zyrtec-d®. behind the pharmacy counter. no prescription needed. okay. you were right. these healthy choice fresh mixer thingys, they taste fresh... say it again! say it like, "mmmm, these healthy choice fresh mixers taste freshh!!" they taste fresh... wait. what are you doing? got it. you're secretly taping me?

u know, it wasn't a secret to us, we knew. yes, but it was a secret to me. of course, otherwise i would be sitting like this and completely block his shot. so that's why i was like... didn't you notice this was weird? no. made fresh from your desk, cook it fresh, strain it fresh, mix it fresh. healthy choice fresh mixers, look for it in the soup or pasta aisle. heavy, heavy rain flout the

southeast caused deadly flooding. an elementary school almost under water just west of atlanta where our rob marciano is. you are up to the knee, hips in 2? >> reporter: good news, going down a little bit pup go around the corner, it drops off davgly. this neighborhood inundated with water. just a small creek came up quickly yesterday morning and by the time all was said and done, they got most of the people out. but 30 to 40 homes in this subdivision completely doused in water. a chain of events you wouldn't believe. ten days of steady rainfall across this area. pileup of about ten inches of rain and overnight and the night before last another ten inches and the ground just couldn't hold it. ap all across the atlanta area it is a flood of historic proportion. it's a cruel irony after months of drought, heavy rains spawning deadly floods. across much of the southeast,

streets are covered, homes are destroyed, tranquil creeks now on a rampage. in some places near atlanta nearly two feet of rain fell. >> this is the highest water that i've seen and i've been living here all my life. >> reporter: this couple was rescued by boat late last night in the pitch black they had to use flashlights to see, and the only thing they could bring with them, their dog, and a few family treasures. >> he's are my wedding pictures. >> reporter: they were luckier. others lost something so much more dear. >> talking to him at 12:30 last night. he said, water's flooding in my car. i cannot get it opened. he said, i've got to call 911, and then his phone went dead. >> reporter: in georgia right now, 17 counties under a state of emergency. officials say they're in rescue and recovery mode. but those res kis especially around atlanta have been slow and difficult. pictures showing just how crippled some areas of the city are. in the western suburb's powder

spring, a house is left to burn. next to it, a fire truck, stranded, helpless in the rising floodwaters. these two men had to get around on inflatable mattresses. and so many people are stunned by what they're seeing. >> i don't think it set in that this is real. this is -- we're flooded out. we don't have a hoe. home. >> reporter: many people here don't have a home anymore. you see that mailbox in front of me? when we got there, that water was almost up to the top of that. certainly when the river was at its highest last night, up and over the top of my head. the couple of thing. that car right there, gentleman driving down with his kids at 6:30. dark. he plowed into a wall of water. car stopped. had to get the kids out and head for higher ground to save them and then that garage door that's opened right there, that woman opened the garage door like any other day to go to work and, boom, a wall of water engulfed her. she and her brother head to the

top floor and be rescued by boat. this scene, virginia, and those kind of stories are echoed throughout much of northern and central georgia as this historic flood took place. what's remarkable to me, without a tropical storm or hurricane. you get this kind of rainfall, anything remotely close to this, 2004 with hurricane frances and ivan. this kind of rainfall without a hurricane, in my mind, unprecedented and certainly unusual. waters are receding now and hopefully the rain will hold off. no guarantee of that for the next few days. back to you. >> another thing we have to worry about. rob marciano, appreciate it. thank you so much. we want to let you know authorities in central illinois are investigating the killings of five family members in what they describe as a brutal homicide. three of the victims were children. the bodies found yesterday in ta home in the farming community of beason about 40 miles northeast of springfield. officials say a 3-year-old is a possible survivor. authorities have not revealed how the victims died. no suspect or arrests at this

point, but we'll keep you posted. an arizona couple insists the photos of their three daughter, the kind of bathtime pictures most families have. after the images were took to walmart to be developed, child protective services showed up and took their girls. it happened last fall. ed kids18 months, 4 and 5 years old. the couple didn't regain custody more more than a month while the state investigated the possibility of abuse. >> here we were, forced to sit and watch helplessly as they ripped our crying, screaming -- terrified children away from us. >> you know, we realized how much control the state has and that they can pull any one of your children out of your home right now. >> they've announced suing the state of arizona an walmart. so far, no response from authorities or the retail chain. president obama says the u.s. needs to do more to combat climate change.

do you agree or do you think global warming isn't really a big deal? we'll hear your views coming up, next. (announcer) everything you need to stay balanced on long trips. residence inn. it's what doctors recommend most for headaches. for arthritis pain... in your hands... knees... and back. for little bodies with fevers.. and big bodies on high blood pressure medicine. tylenol works with your body... in a way other pain relievers don't... so you feel better... knowing doctors recommend tylenol... more than any other brand of pain reliever. progresso. your chicken tuscany says it has fiber in it.

yep. four tasty new soups with 28% of your daily fiber. but i like this chicken tuscany., i like it too. but it has fiber in it. that's right. fiber? yeah. but i like it. (announcer) progresso. you gotta taste this soup. could save 'em hundreds on car just telinsurance.e geico it's actually doing it. gecko vo: businessmen say "hard work equals success." well, you're looking at, arguably, the world's most successful businessgecko. gecko vo: first rule of "hard work equals success." gecko vo: that's why geico is consistently rated excellent or better in terms of financial strength. gecko vo: second rule: "don't steal a coworker's egg salad, 'specially if it's marked "the gecko." come on people. so, at national, i go right past the counter... and you get to choose any car in the aisle. choose any car? you cannot be serious! okay. seriously, you choose. go national. go like a pro.

(announcer) everything you need to take a breather on long trips. residence inn.

floodwaters continues to rise in parts of georgia. three of its neighbors states as well having problems. the disaster has already claimed at least eight lives in the southeast, and this is far from over at this point. catherine callaway joins us from georgia, just west of atlanta. how bad has the flooding been there? >> reporter: well, you know, as you said, it stretches across 17 counties and varies degrees of disaster, but here i have to tell you, most of this neighborhood is under water. though we have seen some of the waters begin to recede, but the rain was so heavy, virginia. in fact, in some areas, there were 22 inches of rain that fell.

>> this is the high waters that i've seen and i've been living here all my life. >> reporter: roadways and homes submerged in water. making getting around by car or foot nearly impossible in parts of georgia. these men uses air mattresses to float to a house. the massive flooding caused by torrential downpours across the southeast pushed rivers and creeks over their banks. georgia's governor declared a state of emergency for parts of the state. >> the kind of lives lost, the kind of property damage we've had, the kind of expenses that our local governments will face in recovering from this, i think is worthy of a presidential declaration. we've asked for that. >> reporter: the fast-moving water led to many rescues. claiming lives in both georgia and tennessee. in suburban atlanta, a woman trapped in her car surrounded by water called for help, but was swept away before rescuers arrived.

for emergency personnel, conditions are extremely hazardous. >> those rescuers are putting their lives at risk trying to get someone out who foolishly drove through rushing water. >> reporter: efforts are also underway to restore power to many neighborhood. the rising water also closing schools, forcing hundreds to evacuate. some residents took cover in shelters provided by the red cross. and many people in this neighborhood especially had to flee last night as the floodwaters began to rise. i will tell you, virginia that when we came here this morning, the water and the yellow house behind us, the water was all the way up to the top of the garage. you can see that it has begun to recede a bit and the sun is actually out right now. amazing, because we've seen showers on and off this morning but also hearing there is more rain on the way. certainly not as heavy as we've seen the last couple of day, but a lot of these people are not even able to return home yet

because many of the roads around here including the major interstate nearby, interstate 20, has been closed because they're waiting for the floodwaters to recede. >> catherine, as far as you can tell, are most of the residents out of those homes we see behind you? >> reporter: yes, absolutely. information the only residents that are here are the ones that are behind my camera, and there's only about five or six of those homes. they are still, you know, stayed here overnight. most of these people did leave and we have spoken with a few who tried to trickle back in, and it's a very sad situation, because many do not have flood insurance, and this will be a total loss for them. >> it's so sad. cathryn calloway. thank you, catherine. meantime, the fib fib and the department of homeland security issued scuty by securi beaut bulletins. not mentions specific plots.

but they say the sites are still acontractive targets for groups like al qaeda. the bulletins recommend police leave patrols at terminals and stations. coinciding with a wide'sing terror investigation. acts are looking for a dozen people for questioning in connection with an alleged flot blow up transportation hubs. three bhen taken into custody over are the weekend as we reported to you. two in denver, one in new york. right now they're only charged with lying to authorities. senator robert byrd was taken to the hospital today after a fall at his home in the d.c. area. a spokesman says the 91-year-old west virginia democrat apparently stood up too fast and fell. he saysbyrd's caregiver called an ambulance just in case. byrd has been frail in health in recent years. he is the longest serving senator in history. authorities in central illinois are invet gating the

killings of five family members in what they are describing as brutal homtsds. homicide. three of the victims were children. police were responding to possible fires shots when they discovered the scene. authorities did not reveal how the victims died. no suspects or arrests so far. right now police are on their way to haiti to question a florida man accused of killing his entire family. mesac damas's wife and five children were found dead in their home. police described it as a horrific scene. the children ranged in age from 11 months to 9 years. authorities captured damas yesterday. officially charged with six counts of murder. the government asked haiti to extradite damas to the united states. and the case of the florida missing girl haleigh cummings

could put the spotlight back on the stepmom misty croslin. her brother broke down during conferring. he said he went to the home in february and says ronald asked him to go because he couldn't get ahold of misty. the brother says he repeatedly pounded on the door but no one opened it. misty croslin insisted she was home all night. told police she tucked haillee into bed, woke up and found haleigh gone and the back door open. last night a radio director program told nancy grace police are holding tony croslin in jail hoping he'll keep talking. >> tommy tells detectives that ronald had called him from work stating he wanted tommy to go down and check on the trailer. not been able to reach misty since they got on a fight on the telephone earlier in the evening. he agrees. goes down to the trailer. tells police he banged on the

door, and he got no answer. he looked inside through the windows. saw no light, no television. did not hear a sound. it was quiet. according to police, he stopped just short of saying no one was at home. >> no suspects named in the dispattern of haleigh cummings. authorities still consider the investigation to be a missing person's case. president obama told other world leaders today that the u.s. is determined to act against global warming. at today's u.n. summit on climate change, the president promoted his plan to develop clean energy sources and reduce green house gas emissions. >> too many years mankind has been slow to respond or even recognize the magnitude of the climate threat. it is true of my own country as well. we recognize that. but this is a new day. it is a new era, and i am froud say that the united states has done more to promote clean flrg and reduce carbon pollution in the last eight months than at

any other time in our history. >> president obama called on rapidly growing developing countries to do their part to fight global warming as well. by the way, this is his first speech to the united nations. we want to ask you, do you agree with the president? do you think the u.s. needs to do more to combat climate change? or do you believe the affects of global warming are overblown? money put towards it would be a waste? call with your views. you can e-mail us at cnn.com/hln, or text the word views, plus your comments and name to hln-tv. standard rates apply, and we are going to be airing your responses throughout the day. president obama is holding his first joint meeting with israeli and palestinian leaders today. he is sitting down with israel irprime minister ben ning netanyahu and palestinian authority mahmoud abbas. the white house insists it has no grand expectations of

significant movement in peace negotiations. still it is the first meeting of the three parties since president obama and netanyahu took office. later in the day, the president meets with his counterpart. and doing due diligence or family's memories kurn turned into a parents' worst nightmare. a picture is worth 1,000 words. what is one picture saying exactly involving children? we're showing live pictures of a house on fire surrounded by floodwaters. we'll keep you posted on what happens. this is gwinnett county east of atlanta where they suffered a lot of flooding damage. we showed up earlier a house that had been burned down, a fire tlauk got stuck in the floodwaters and here another situation with a house on fire. so difficult for emergency drew crews to get around with the water so high. we'll keep following the situation and give you the very latest. stay with us.

updating you on a breaking story. live pictures in gwinnett county, georgia. that house surruineded by floodwaters creating obstacles for emergency crews that have to respond to things like fire. we showed you a neighborhood earlier where a house was burned down and a fire truck that got stuck in the water there up to its tires. up to the top of the tires. his is another difficult situation as this fire burns and how crews are supposed to get to it. irony. surrounded by water yet it's on fire. we'll continue to monitor the situation and bring you the latest. a 16-year-old girl says she got a text message telling her to kill herself.

police say they may consider this a crime. police in indiana say the high school student got other messages similar, even telling her she deserved a beating. investigators plan on talking to three classmates believed to be behind these texts. police say anyone involved could face charges. >> it would be very easy for someone to hand somebody their phone and say, hey, send this for me. if there is any kind of conspiracy such as that, then the person who is planning that with the individual who sent it is in just as much trouble at the naern actually sent the text. >> the -- parents need to keep an eye on their kids's cell phone habits. an arizona couple invists the photos of their three daughters are the kind of bathtub photos most have. after taken them to walmart to be developed, child protective services showed up and took their daughters. it happened last fall. the kids were 18 moss, 4 and 5 years old.

the couple didn't regain custody for more than a month while the state investigated the possibility of abuse. >> here we were, forced to sit and watch helplessly as they ripped our crying, screaming -- terrified children away from us. >> we now realize how much control the state has, and that they can pull any one of your children out of your home right now. >> they are suing the state of arizona and walmart. so far no response from authorities or the retail chain. our i-reporters are out in force telling their stories of historic flooding in north georgia. georgia. air my eyes would really itch. but now i have new zyrtec® itchy eye drops. no other allergy itchy eye drop works faster or longer. zyrtec® itchy eye drops work fast i can love the air™. (announcer) find it in the allergy aisle.

this is another., new total blueberry pomegranate cereal gives you 100% of the daily value of 12 essential vitamins and minerals. and is truly delicious. how are you getting 100%? [ birds squawking ] [ moos ] [ man announcing ] if you think about it, this is what makes theladders different from other job search sites. we only want the big jobs. welcome to theladders. a premium job site for only $100k+ jobs and only $100k+ talent. that make every day special. fancy feast introduces an entirely new way to celebrate any moment. fancy feast appetizers. simple high quality ingredients like wild alaskan salmon, white meat chicken,

or seabass and shrimp in a delicate broth, prepared without by-products or fillers. new fancy feast appetizers celebrate the moment. update you on a story we've been following. a house on fire in gwinnett county, georgia. a video taken a short time ago. the floodwaters created a problem for emergency crews because some of the roads are impassable. we'll continue to monitor the situation and bring you the latest.

meantime, to clarksdale, elementary school. pictures as well. that school nearly under water at one point. most of the schools in north georgia have been closed for today, and you can see why. between the flooding of the buildings and as well as the roads. we'll keep you posted with the flooding. meantime, our i-reporters are in the heart of the flooding areas across parts of the southeast sending amazing video and pictures to illustrate what is really happening out there and what they're facing. this i-reporter, jim, in marietta, georgia. you can see the water. look at that. rushing through the road. dangerous situation obviously. if anyone tried to cross in. he and his wife directed traffic telling drivers to turn around. the right lane of that road since clapped. he has never seen the creek flood like this in 20 years of living there. meanwhile, amazing pictures of the flooding creek in his retirement community north of atlanta. take a look.

>> this is bob. i'm sure all of you trout tishermen would know where bob's creek is. anyway, it's taken our little, small trout creek and turned it into a raging river, which is all up and down, moving down towards you. >> definitely a raging river there. luckily, it found 12 feet above the creek. meantime when i-reporter heard of flooding in downtown atlanta pe grabbed his camera, parked on a bridge and captured this video. a shot of a downtown atlanta connector that basically turns into a lake's we're talking interstate. we're showing you live pictures here from one of our affiliates in atlanta. wgplp people having to use both to get around bp so much flooding has gotten oh deep in areas where there used to be lawns and streets. we continue to follow this, and we will bring you the very latest of this flooding. now, if you have pictures and video of flooding in your area

or any other breaking news go to ireport.com, click on the upload now link. there you find complete instructions on how to submit your story. one woman found herself $ 0,000 in the hole. $80,000. she is digging her way out of debt and says can you do it, too. al been childrallan chernoff ex. >> reporter: two years ago, drowning in credit card debt to the tune of $80,000. nearly ten times the $8,300 the average american family owes on their card. >> about 17 credit cards at the time. >> dawn was dealing with several factors. high credit card tret rates, her divorce and using her personal card for the high expenses opening up a section location of her video store. >> every month writing out 17 checks and the interest rates, they ranged from, like, 6% to 33%.

quite honestly, living beyond my means is another part of it. i'll own up to that, and -- just, you know, there's always unforeseen expenses and when you're making the minimum payments on these credit cards when you can't afford to make more than that they don't go down. >> reporter: dawn took matters into her own hands and sold the second store location, stopped using her cards and called for help. >> i sat down one day and i called each credit card one by one. i asked all of them to work with me to lower my interest rate. >> reporter: that didn't go anywhere. instead she was directed to the debt management program of the not for profit consumer credit counseling service. counselor eric jackson helped dawn analyze bills and expenses and created a plan to help her get lower interest rates. now she makes a single monthly payment. >> i don't even have to think about it which makes it a lot

easier for me because, you know, when you have a lot of debt, it's not just financial, it's emotional. even a goal where you think about it all the time. >> she posts to her creditor accounts. she has very low interest rates. that was one of the benefits and she's doing well. she's on track to get her debts paid off in full within the five years. >> reporter: today dawn is less than $40,000 in debt. >> i'm about halfway. yeah. it hasn't been easy but we're getting there. >> reporter: allen chernoff, cnn, new york. how to make it in a tough economy. some people are doing it. for more on our series money and main street watch cnn tonight at 8:00 eastern time. one town's mayor doesn't want police running after suspects anymore but wait until you see how adamant she is about it. stay with us. we'll be right back. i would say convenience is something

that the bank of america really has the market cornered on. let me make it easier for you. let me show you how i can make it easier for you. we have the number one rated online banking website. it has an alert system that can text message you, so you're mobile banking, your bank's telling you, what your current balance is., it's telling you if a certain check is cleared. customers that use the internet, use online banking. it all kind of falls in with what you're doing, and it's free. you can pay all your bills online,, customers can save tons of time. we have great new image atms. it will give you a receipt which has a copy of the check you deposited. deposit cash, any denomination you don't even have to count the cash, just put it in there. let it do the work for you. and they can have those deposits posted to their account the same business day up until 8 o'clock. you're in control of your finances., now when you talk about convenience,,

you measure us up to everyone else. well, you'll see we stand ahead of the curve., but those days came and went,. but today's a new day. and a few simple steps can make a real difference in your next quit... things like starting with a plan to quit smoking... getting support... and talking to your doctor about how prescription treatments can help you.

talk to your doctor about prescription treatment options. and make this time, your time. ♪ welcome to comcast local edition. i am donna richardson and my guest this hour is colonel george f. johnson iv superintendent of the maryland natural resources police. colonel, thank you for joining me. >> great to be here with you. >> in addition to being with the maryland natural resources you are president of the maryland police chief association, and who in addition to chief are your members? and who is working with you? >> it is comprised mostly of chief of police from all over the state and state government and law enforcement chiefs and county and municipalities that

exist in all of the state of maryland. >> i know as a group i know there are several initiatives taking place. there is a new one. checkpoint strike force. >> yes, it is a research based-multi-state situation where we pick and we go out there and we look for drivers that are impaired and work to get them off of the road and we do that through our sobriarity checkpoints and our saturation patrols. >> and so, which jerse - jurisdiction, one specific area or all of the jurisdictions now involved? >> all throughout maryland, the chiefs of police have signed on. every jurisdiction signed on in some way shape or form to participate in the checkpoint strike force. >> and so do you find that the checkpoints are helpful in

hopefully lowering traffic fatalities? >> absolutely. fatalities have been reduced 20 percent in the areas where we are doing the checkpoints . it proves to be extremely beneficial to us in many different ways. >> and do you find that the residents are supporting the checkpoints and do you have partner necessary this effort? >> yes, we do. as you know, it is a powerful organization of mothers against drunk drivers. we work with them chosely in this endeavor and other organizations. their surveys indicate 85 to 90 percent of the people they talked to support the checkpoints. >> do you do these at specific times of year or are the checkpoints ongoing initiative. >> they are ongoing initiatives. they will be taking place every week and everywhere and where you think that it is the best

possible opportunity to deploy the work force and effective use knowledge of our people in this endeavor. >> as you are having the checkpoints and i know initially you are looking for impaired drivers, but are you finding other things when you are pulling over the impaired drivers? >> oh, yes. people are very surprised what we run into on the checkpoints. the main focus is to get the impaired drivers that use alcohol off of the streets and identify them. but we are running into people who have warrants on them. their licenses are suspended, some people have drugs in the vehicle this we were able to detect and find. there is a whole gamut of things and seat belt usage. it helps us with the seat belt initiatives and child safety seat.

we are able to make different observations and of course, we put a lot of emphasis on the seat belt usage and child safety seat as well >> i know some jurisdiction or most of the them, there is zero tolerance if you don't have your seat belt on, it is amazing that people are still driving without them. >> it is with the seat belt usage, if you are involved in an accident with the impaired drivers that use alcohol that gives you that much more of a chance to survive. >> how can citizens assist with the checkpoint strike force? >> we need them to be our eyes and ears out there. as with many thing necessary law enforcement and we ask citizens to do. if they see a person driving erratically or aggressively and feel they are under the influence of alcohol. pick up the cell phone and dial the number 911 or what ever it is that they feel comfortable in

using. >> thank you, colonel for joining me. >> donna thank you for helping us. >> thank you for watching comcast local edition. i am donna richason.